This course provides an introduction to a wide range of
Pacific art both object and performance based, their origins,
histories, interconnections and social functioning.

Topics covered in the course include tapa, tivaevae, dance,
tatau and other forms of body adornment. The course seeks to
position these art forms firmly within an art historical
discipline. Issues such as gender divisions in Pacific art and
the effects of tourism on Pacific art will also be considered.

In all living and evolving cultures, change, adaptation and
experimentation are both natural and necessary.

Vilsoni Tausie writes:

"The word traditional has often been misleading and
confusing. It connotes a static and fossilised art form,
unchanged and unaffected, come what may, over the years.
This is not true for what may be traditional today, may
not necessarily be tomorrow. Societies change, and so
must their arts, if they are to be meaningful, functional
and express the sentiment inherent in that society. This
is not a radical and complete break from the past, but
rather a compatible and gradual modification to suit the
new values, identities and concerns of that
society."

Art in the New Pacific. Fiji: Institute of Pacific
Studies, 1979, p viii.

'Tradition' can connote a fixed or static state, in which
change is not encouraged and repetition is typical. This
unfortunate reading of the traditional often works to create
boundaries and barriers for Pacific artists. There exists an
unfortunate gap between the traditional (as past and old) and the
contemporary (as present and new). The constant classing of
Pacific art forms as traditional only, discounts the innovative
and creative work that has been going on within traditionally
conceived art forms such as weaving, carving, dance and body
adornment.

This course seeks to break with the idea of traditional as
rigid and unchanging, and to embrace an approach in Pacific art
practise which blends the traditional with the contemporary.

Class Sessions:2 lectures and 1 tutorial per week.
All students are encouraged to attend tutorials regularly.

Tatau: focus on Samoa
Tourism and its effects and implications on Pacific art.

31 May

Revision

Please note that lecture topics may be subject to change.

Additional handouts and slide lists will be given out in
lectures and tutorials.

Tutorial Programme

Tutorials will be held weekly and al/students are encouraged
to attend.

Please note there are no tutorials in the first week of
classes.

The tutorial programme is a course of study designed to be
complementary to the lecture programme and of equal importance.
It allows students to discuss the material and ideas presented in
lectures. Students are encouraged to treat the tutorials as a
forum for discussion of problems they may encounter in their
readings and research.

Tutorial times:

Tuesday 3 pm
Tuesday 4 pm
Thursday 3 pm

Week beginning:

8 March:

Elam fine arts library trip

15 March:

Visit to Fale Sa. An exhibition by Ioane
Ioane. Auckland Art Gallery

22 March:

Tivaevae: "My Little Art of Tivaevae"
(video)

29 March:

Ways of looking at and writing about Pacific art

MID SEMESTER BREAK

19 April:

Revision: photo question preparation

26 April:

Notions of the traditional and contemporary

3 May:

Visit to Auckland Museum

l0 May:

Body adornment

17 May:

Revision - photo question preparation

24 May:

Cultural Centres

31 May:

Revision: exam preparation

Essay Questions

Assessment for 114.107 during the semester is on the basis of
one test valued at 20% and one essay valued at 30%. Your final
mark consists of course work 50% and exam 50%, though if the
examination percentage is higher than the course work 50%, exam
50%, the final grade will be the examination percentage.

Due date: Thursday 20th May
Mark value: 30%
Word length: 1,500 words. Select one of the following
questions:

1. Many writers have alluded to the problematic implications
of notions of the traditional and the contemporary. Art forms
produced within the Pacific often blend both traditional and
contemporary references to create works within a continuum. Using
specific examples to illustrate your ideas, discuss the ways in
which one of the following Pacific art forms reflects this
practice.

a) tapa
b) tivaevae
c) weaving
d) sculpture and/or carving

2. Adornment plays a vital role in many rituals and ceremonies
within the Pacific. It can connote one's rank, ancestry and
affiliation with particular groups. It also features within
celebrations and times of mourning. Focusing on specific
examples, discuss the importance of body adornment within the
Pacific.

3. "Dancing does not involve the hands and the legs
alone, rather it involves the mind, the heart and the soul. And
this is the beauty of it all. The gracefulness of the hand and
head movements, the skill and talent involved in the leg
movements and the swaying of the hips are all visible
manifestations of an artistic and creative heritage."
Vilsoni Tausie. "Creative Expression and Pacific
Awareness" in Pacific Perspective. Vol 7, #12, 1987,
p6.

Discuss this statement focusing on specific examples of
Pacific dance.

4. Choose a particular museum display or art form produced
within the Pacific, currently on exhibition in a local museum,
and discuss both its cultural significance and the way that it
has been displayed.

5. Are all the implications of tourism negative? Focusing on
specific examples, discuss the effects of tourism on Pacific art
and culture.

'Maori Arts and Crafts', The Maori People Today: A General
Survey, ed.
I.L.G. Sutherland, Wellington. The New Zealand Institute of
International Affairs and the New Zealand Council for Educational
Research, pp. 307-335